Create and Configure an IMS Enterprise Server

Create and configure an enterprise server region on which to run the MFDEMO IMS application.

Create an IMS enterprise server region

We provide a template that you can use to create an MSS- and IMS-enabled enterprise server region configured with the most common features required to run an IMS application or service.

  1. In Visual Studio, open the Server Explorer.

    If it is hidden, display it by choosing View > (Other Windows >) Server Explorer.

  2. Expand Micro Focus Servers.
  3. Right-click localhost, and click New Enterprise Server.

    The Create New Enterprise Server dialog box appears.

  4. Type IMSDEMO into the Name field.
  5. Leave the 64-bit box unchecked.
  6. Click the Browse button associated with the Template field.

    By default, this opens to the location of the Enterprise Server template files.

    Note: The default location for Enterprise Server templates is %ProgramFiles(x86)%\Micro Focus\Enterprise Developer\etc\ServerTemplates. If necessary, browse to this location.
  7. Double-click IMSTemplate.xml to select it.
  8. In the Associate with projects field, check the entry that matches your project name.
  9. Click OK.

    The Output window displays a notification that the server has been created.

  10. In Server Explorer, expand localhost to check that the IMSDEMO server has been added to localhost.

Start Enterprise Server Administration

  • In Server Explorer, right-click Micro Focus Servers; then click Administration.

Configure IMSDEMO

An enterprise server region created using the IMSTemplate template, as has been done for IMSDEMO, is pre-configured with the most common settings used to run IMS applications. Most of the fields and controls cited in this section have been populated with default settings. Most paths are represented by a variable that starts with a dollar sign ($). These are Enterprise Server environment variables, each resolving to a path derived from your IMSTutorial project properties. Because you set your project properties to use the loadlib project folder for all output, each of these variables that point to an output folder resolve to your project's loadlib directory. Later in the tutorial, you can look at the configuration settings to see the actual value of each variable.

Tip: For a description of each field and control on any page of Enterprise Server Administration, click the This Page link in the Help group near the bottom of the sidebar.
Edit the IMSDEMO region
  • In Enterprise Server Administration, click the Edit button that corresponds to the IMSDEMO entry in the list of servers.

    By default, this action opens the following hierarchy of tabs for editing: Server, Properties, and General.

Set general settings
  1. Verify that Allow Dynamic Debugging is checked.
  2. In the Description field, type IMS Tutorial.
  3. Click Apply.
Verify and set IMS general settings
  1. Click the Server, Properties, MSS, IMS, and General tabs.
  2. Verify the following:
    IMS enabled checked
    Codeset bias ASCII
    ACB file directory $IDE_IMSGENPATH
  3. In the Gen file directory field, replace the value with $IDE_LOADLIB.
  4. Click Apply.
Verify general transaction manager settings
  1. Click the Server, Properties, MSS, IMS, TM, and General tabs.
  2. Verify the following:
    MFS path $IDE_MODPATH
    Application path $IDE_LOADLIB
  3. Click Apply.
Verify the automatic message processing region
To run an IMS application in an enterprise server region, you need at least one specialized service execution process (SEP) called a message processing region (MPR). To specify that a message processing region starts each time an enterprise server starts, it must be included in a resource group that is specified by the startup list in the SIT used by the enterprise server.
  1. Click the Server, Properties, MSS, IMS, TM, and MPRs tabs.
  2. Verify the following:
    Name MPR01
    Transaction Class 001
    Description MPR for class 1
Verify the database path
  1. Click the Server, Properties, MSS, IMS, DB, and General tabs.
  2. Verify that Database path is set to $IDE_IMSDATA.
Define resources
The resource definition file that you registered previously in this tutorial enables you to switch back and forth between CICS and IMS modes. The configuration settings for this and the system initialization table (SIT) used with IMS are on the CICS tab associated with mainframe subsystem configuration.
  1. Click the Server, Properties, MSS, and CICS tabs.
  2. Verify the following:
    System Initialization Table IMSSIT
    Transaction Path $IDE_LOADLIB
  3. In the Resource Definition File Path field, type the full path to your project's system directory.
  4. Click Apply.
  5. On the sidebar, click Home to return to the Enterprise Server Administration Home page.
Configure the TN3270 listener

You need to specify a communications port to be used by the TN3270 listener to accept incoming client requests.

  1. In the Communications Processes column for the list of servers, click the Details button that corresponds to the IMSDEMO entry.
  2. Click the Edit button that corresponds to TN3270.
  3. Change the contents of the Endpoint Address field to *:9004.
  4. Click OK.
  5. On the sidebar, click Home to return to the Enterprise Server Administration Home page.

Start IMSDEMO

  1. On the Server Explorer, expand localhost under Micro Focus Servers to see a list of available enterprise server regions.
  2. Right-click IMSDEMO; then select Start from the context menu.
    Note: The first time you start the IMSDEMO region, the Enterprise Server Sign On dialog box prompts you to enter connection details. Because the server is not secured, just click OK to continue.

    The Output window shows the progress of the Start command.

View environment variable values

Enterprise Server provides a utility, ES Monitor & Control (ESMAC), that enables you to see the full configuration for your enterprise server region. Here you access ESMAC to view the values for the environment variables specified in your configuration. Each environment variable set in your configuration resolves to the corresponding value represented in ESMAC.

  1. Once IMSDEMO has started, return to the Enterprise Server Administration Home page.
  2. Click the Details button in the Status column for the IMSDEMO enterprise server region.
  3. Click ES Monitor & Control.
  4. On the sidebar menu click Env. Vars.
  5. Scroll down the list of environment variables, and note the values for all variables that begin with IDE.
  6. When you are finished, close the Enterprise Server Administration tab in Visual Studio.
Note: If you intend to complete the remainder of this tutorial during your current session, keep IMSDEMO in its Started state in preparation for running the MFDEMO application as outlined in the next topic.